...PLEASE don't do it.

I'd like to appeal to your decency, LW.

As a U.S. citizen who married an immigrant out of love and is in a real marriage, I had to jump through all the crazy hoops, and I still have to deal with USCIS all the time. My husband and I have to register our address with the federal government within 10 days of moving. We had to explain to our friends that they might have to answer the questions of federal immigration workers. We had to get letters from our employers proving how much we make (to prove I can support him for the requisite 10 years). We had to take days off work to visit our lawyer and file the paperwork on time and correctly (even one mistake can have permanent and terrible consequences). We had to go stand in line at 6 in the morning for our interview, which thankfully went well. And we still have another interview to look forward to in a few years.

It was a giant hassle and it tested our commitment to each other tremendously -- no ordinary couple has to try so hard to stay together. And it would NOT be so hard a process if there weren't people trying to scam it for money. The more people exploit the system, the more strict the law becomes and the number of hoops we have to jump through grows.

So please, think of the people in real marriages -- those people whom you (and like-minded individuals) hurt when you commit immigration fraud. It just makes it harder on all of us who want to marry an immigrant and actually live with them in this country as a real married couple!

Thank you.

Be a law-abiding citizen.

Work through traditional, legal means to change the system where you find fault: elections, the courts, writing letters to elected officials.

Earn your way, and borrow what you need by establishing good credit.

Should you choose to marry someday, respect both yourself and the institution and marry for love and companionship.

Respect that things don't always go your way, and sometimes it's inconvenient, unfair, and occasionally illegal. That's when we call in police and lawyers.

Call me crazy. I'm not right-wing, I'm a Liberal. And somehow I've managed to make it into middle age living by these few, simple, legal rules.

Another little legal wrinkle is the fact that, if you live in a community property state, your "spouse" could claim half of your new business. If you ever do something like this, even a pre-nup wouldn't hold up if he confessed.

It's certainly true that it's a risky proposition, but then it's the LW's business to weigh the factors. I can say that I did what she's considering (way back in the 70's), and didn't regret it. The guy was a good friend of good character, who wanted very much to stay in the States to pursue a law degree. The money actually wasn't all that much, but I needed it at the time, so I went ahead. We didn't have sex because we didn't feel either the inclination or the need. (Like I said, we were just friends.) We did the whole dance for the INS people, and he got his citizenship. He moved away, then a few years later he showed up with divorce papers, which I signed. We went out to dinner along with his new girlfriend, had a nice time, he thanked me very much for helping him, and that was that.

It was for me a favor for a friend who I knew would be an asset to the US, and not a big deal. (I've never been big on marriage, and a later "legitimate" marriage did nothing to change my mind on that score.) Things are very different these days, and I don't think I'd do it again in the present climate. Probably too risky, and if the LW is considering it in order to start a business, it might lead to troubles down the road (if LW doesn't get caught right away).

Read what Imm Dame -- she spelled it out without the typos and the rambling.

The INS will typically tend to look less hard at marriages where the non-US party comes from a place where an immigrant Visa would be relatively straightforward to obtain. They are not idiots, they see say a Canadian as relatively unlikely to resort to such an arrangement. Ditto a highly educated English speaker who could get a H-1.

But (a) the atmosphere has changed; and (b) if they get any idea that it's a sham and they will be all over you.

I would not assume that because some people had an easy ride, you will. You have already, by your e-mail made it clear you cannot pull this off.

Don't kid yourself, what you are proposing is the equivalent of agreeing to have an unmentionable social disease, with no certain remedy. It is not likely to be a trip to a registry office, a quiet wedding, a few hours with a nice INS agent, who will say, ooh that is so nice, did you have flowers in your hair.

Nope, it will be someone sharing an appartment with you for 2-5 years, pretending to be your husband; pretending to be a cuckold every time you sleep with someone else; who has a legal claim to 1/2 your property; who cannot legally work for 3-9 months while waiting for the card (which these days is white) to arrive; repeated visits to INS offices (some of which are much worse than others and which are assigned based on your ZIP code -- so that immigration lawyers will for example tell people not to live in DC or northern VA to avoid the Alexandria field office, but rather live in Maryland so they can go to Baltimore.) You know what happens at an INS office -- at best the queue starts at 5-7am, 2 hours before they open (with a "roach coach" for coffee at 8am) -- if you are there early enough, you get in before they close the doors at say 4:30pm, if not it's tommorow -- get up earlier.

You are proposing to bind yourself to someone who is prepared to be dishonest to the world about being married to you; you will need the trappings of marriage, a lease or home in both names; joint bank account; common home. Will this work? You will have to tell everyone this is your husband -- they will see you screwing around and him tolerating it; how well will he live with the perceived humiliation?

You know, people do get away with doing dumb shit all the time -- the average criminal committs many more crimes than they get convicted for. But realize, once you have much to lose (which is most middle class people), the consequences of being caught once outweighs any gains. Chances are you are a middle class, fairly decently educated person, with, despite what you think a decent, lifestyle, OK job prospects, decent credit. Rest assured, get caught, and you will probably lose that status for at least a while if not for good (many employers now use background checks for senior jobs, lots of venture capitalists check out senior execs and this would be a big red flag.) Even if you avoid the criminal consequences, worry about the other issues, the social and financial risks that come with you spouse and his ability to use your name. Finally, you can reasonably expect to spend 1,000 hours a year for 3-5 years keeping the balls in the air on this scheme. To me that is a six-seven figure number of dollars.

It's a brain-fart, dumb, seriously stupid.